Read Chapters 9, 11 and 12 of Macroeconomics: Private and Public Choice. There are two parts to this discussion. Part 1 In your own words define and explain fiscal policy. List the pros and cons for the fiscal policy you selected. Include supply-side economics in your explanation. As you think through your answer, remember the government may exercise expansionary or restrictive fiscal policy. Part 2 Research one specific real-life example of a fiscal policy and explain its overall impact on the economy. In your example, discuss any political influences. Note: when possible, select a different example than those already posted by a fellow classmate. Discussion 2 Prior to beginning work on this discussion, Read Chapter 11 of Macroeconomics: Private and Public Choice. Read Chapter 4 of Popular Economics: What the Rolling Stones, Downton Abbey, and LeBron James Can Teach You About Economics. Let’s cordially debate a controversial and often misunderstood macroeconomic topic. Our huge U.S. government debt (see the latest debt being counted at U.S. Debt Clock (Links to an external site.)) continues to grow and is constantly in the news. For your initial post address the following: Is the large and increasing national debt an issue we should be concerned about? How does John Tamny view the national debt? What is your conclusion? Is this a problem, why or why not? Be sure to support your conclusion with facts.

Lesson 2: Barilla SpA Case Team AssignmentAs you develop responses to the assignment questions, please keep the following in mind:Barilla uses a continuous manufacturing process to produce pasta. This process is described in the Pasta Manufacturing portion of the case. Kiln humidity and temperature are crucial to product quality. Thus, Barilla follows a strict sequence in producing pasta types in order to avoid large production line changeover (setup) costs and lost production time that would be incurred if they made special but out-of-sequence runs. For the purpose of this case, assume that changing or modifying this manufacturing process is not a viable option for Barilla.Many retail outlets in Italy are small shops (not large grocery stores as in the U.S.) with a minimum level of communication and computer sophistication, particularly at the time of the case in the 1990s. Thus, the electronic transfer of point of sale data is NOT a viable option in the foreseeable future for these shops.Assignment Documents and MaterialsPlease be sure to carefully read all the following assignment documents and reference materials provided below before starting your responses to the assignment questions.Submit your group assignment by the due date provided on the Course Schedule. Additional submission instructions are provided in the Dropbox.1. Review the General information on Case Preparation and Presentations Guidelines:The general guidelines and tips are provided to help assist your team in preparing and completing the case assignment. The following topics are discussed in the general Case Preparation and Presentation Guidelines document file:IntroductionExpectations: What is Expected of You in the Case Method?Definition: What is a Case?Case Preparation GuidelinesIndividual PreparationSmall-Group/Team Deliberatio2. Assignment Document and Questions:The assignment document is provided in the M4 Lesson 2 Barilla SpA Case Team Assignment Dropbox for download located under the Module link. This file contains all the following information to help you complete the case assignment:Assignment ObjectivesAssignment IntroductionAssignment DirectionsAssignment Guidelines and RequirementsAssignment QuestionsGrading CriteriaCover PageAcademic Integrity PledgeRead each question and the advice statements carefully. If you have some doubt on the meaning of a question, please do not hesitate to ask me for some clarification.3. Readings Related to the Case AssignmentThe following optional readings are provided to help you complete this assignment:Read the article: "'Bullwhip' Hits Firms as Growth Snaps Back .docx" by Timothy Aeppel. This recent article takes the Bullwhip Effect to a different level and explains how it impacts the macroeconomic economy by looking at the USA and China and how they interact on a global scale.Read the article: "Globalization, China, and the Bullwhip Effect.docx" by Chris G. Christopher, JR. If you are interested in how the Bullwhip is impacting Caterpillar--you might find this article interesting! http://www.supplychainquarterly.com/columns/scq201003monetarymatters/Working in TeamsAlthough each team has had the experience of working together on two small group assignments, you will likely find this first case study will require more time than you expect to organize your team's efforts and to prepare the case study analysis. Thus, it is recommended that each team start to organize itself very early this week to set a team meeting schedule, team member responsibilities, and deadlines. The following are just a few suggestions on working in groups:Most groups identify someone as the administrator for each case assignment. The administrator's task is largely to keep the group on-task and on-schedule.All team members must commit to supporting their team administrator. This includes frequent participation, substantive contributions, and timely intermediate submissions.While each person in the team may take prime responsibility for a particular case study question, the content of the response to each case question is to be a collaborative effort of the group. Therefore, it is advised that each person develops some type of written input to each case question that they submit to the group. This obviously must be done sufficiently early in the preparation period to allow others to review and respond. If questions arise on an individual member's contribution, the member or team may be asked for this written input.